The present invention is directed to a storage platform for use in a frame which would permit access to both sides of the storage platform. One type of storage platform within the scope of the invention is a drawer assembly, and one frame with which one or more drawer assemblies can be used is a medication cart for the dispensing of pharmaceuticals. One manufacturer of medication carts is Artromick International, Inc., Columbus, Ohio which produces various lines of carts, such as the MD Series. Certain of the Artromick medication carts have drawer guide systems comprised of opposed pairs of horizontal slots running the length of the medication cart from front to back, i.e., side to side. Where the medication cart is designed for dual-sided access, a drawer assembly inserted into one pair of horizontal slots can be passed completely through the medication cart from one side through the other.
Drawers capable of passing "straight through" the medication cart have certain advantages in the dispensing of the various medications employed in a hospital, nursing home or other long term health care facility. The "straight through" drawer can be completely removed and thereby easily restocked, and/or moved to another pair of slots. Also, the "straight through" drawers are accessible from either side of the medication cart, permitting access without the need of rotating the cart 180.degree.. This is an important consideration in hospital rooms and corridors where maneuver space is not always available. Also, the "straight through" drawer does not need rollers, bearings, or lubrication in the individual drawer guides for movement through the horizontal slots in the medication cart.
However, the straight through drawers suffer from several perceived disadvantages by some users. Because the drawer freely slides in the drawer guide system of the medication cart, it is possible to inadvertently pull the drawer beyond the point where the guides in the drawer still mate with the drawer guides, and thereby spill and/or break the stored contents as the drawer falls from the medication cart. Also, when the drawer is pulled out from one side of the medication cart, one cannot readily access the drawer from the other side. In a related problem, as the straight through drawer is pulled out from one side, the contents of the drawer below become exposed on the opposite side, making possible the unauthorized removal of pharmaceuticals from the medication cart.
It is an object of this invention to provide a drawer assembly for use in a drawer guide system medication cart which permits partial withdrawal of one side of the drawer assembly without rearward movement of the other side of the drawer.
It is a further object of this invention to provide a drawer assembly which is accessible from either end of a frame, such as a medication cart, without the risk of accidental spillage of the drawer contents.
It is an advantage of the invention that the drawer assembly requires no lubrication and has no roller wheels or bearings which might damage or soil the user's clothing.
These and other objects and advantages will be further explained and described in the following text and drawings in which: